I've been thinking about getting some lately, then I found out there are many types of them...

Soft or rigid; disposable or not; daily and extended-wear etc.. etc..

I've read some info about it, mostly regarding cleaning/infections etc., but I would like to hear from you guys what kind of experience you had with them, and whether it's worth it and you recommend it. And which type is better? I was thinking about soft disposable ones, but I'm not sure whether to get extended or daily use ones.

I used to use soft daily dispobable lenses, but then started to have problems like infections, so I decided to get laser treatment instead. I tried the rigid lenses but couldn't stand them and have to take them out pretty much straight away when trying them. I was short-sighted.

I wear soft lenses since 1996 and I am strongly recommending them to you. First, you've got to consult your docotr and he will tell you what types to use.

As for infections, if you're reasonably careful, you won't get any of these. The first thing is always to wash your hands thoroughly every time you deal with lenses. For puting them on and taking them off, you'll need less than five minutes once you get used to deal with them.

Not even soft lenses are all the same. I have very dry eyes and Bausch and Lomb lenses were not very comfortable. Now, I'm using Cooper Vision lenses and they are great.

If you ask me, you should not hesitate at all. I was a bit afraid at first, but now I'm glad I'm using them. If there's any other thing you want to ask, you can also contact me privately.

Quoting Concord977 (Reply 2):with soft lenses is that you must reach in an literally pull them off of your eye

Well, it sounds worse than it is. It's not much of a problem. Soft lenses stick better to the eye.

Quoting Concord977 (Reply 2):There is a benefit to wearing gas-permeable rigid lenses: your vision is basically 'frozen' at its current prescription so that your eyes do not get worse (in most cases).

I think it's the case with all types of lenses. My sight is the same as it was back in 1996 and I go on check-ups almost every six months. For PPVRA it would be the biggest benefit, because eye-sight can change until the age of 27 and with contact lenses he can stop that process.

Quoting Aleksandar (Reply 3):If you ask me, you should not hesitate at all. I was a bit afraid at first, but now I'm glad I'm using them. If there's any other thing you want to ask, you can also contact me privately.

Quoting Aleksandar (Reply 3):Well, it sounds worse than it is. It's not much of a problem. Soft lenses stick better to the eye.

I agree with both of these statements. I use soft lenses (monthly disposable) and am extremely happy with them. The first week is slightly tough with lenses, but that's about all it takes to get comfortable with them. And once you're past the initial stage, you'll realize how much fun it is! And I absolutely agree that wearing lenses completely stops the eyesight from deteriorating.

I recommend Paragon CRT lenses. You wear them at night, the reshape your eyes and you have great vision. I usually get 20/15 the first day, 20/20 the second and it quickly deteriorates from that point on. http://www.paragonCRT.com. As I said, I highly recommend them.

Quoting Aleksandar (Reply 3):I think it's the case with all types of lenses. My sight is the same as it was back in 1996 and I go on check-ups almost every six months. For PPVRA it would be the biggest benefit, because eye-sight can change until the age of 27 and with contact lenses he can stop that proces

Not for me it isn't.
My eyes have continued to get worse for the last 3-4 years and it was a sharp descent! At first I wore soft monthly lenses, but now am participating in a trial on lenses that intent to halt the rapid deterioration of my vision. I have to use the same pair for a year which I'm not too happy about and these ones seem to be a lot less comfy then my last ones.

Getting used to taking lenses out and putting them in can take quite awhile, took me about 2 months and then from there it becomes second nature.
Falling asleep in lenses makes them stick to your eyeballs, which obviously isn't too nice when you have to literally claw them off of your eyes!!

If you like to party then get daily disposable because taking your lenses off and cleaning and storing them is very tricky when drunk!

Overall though, go for it!! I got rid of my glasses two years ago and haven't looked back since!!

Youch. My optometrist has always said that little suction cup thingy is intended for the times when your lens moves off of your cornea and gets stuck on your sclera. He said the risk with the plunger is that it usually removes a little tissue along with the lens.

I was against wearing contacts when I was a kid. During my late teens, I became seriously tired of wearing glasses so I decided to go with contacts. It's ten times better than wearing glasses IMO. Once you can get passed the initial application of the lenses at the eye doctors, it's cake.

I have the extended wear soft variety. I have really crappy eyesite to begin with plus an astigmatism so I was surprised there were ones available for me (not that I knew much about them at the time). I'm supposed to use them for two weeks then throw them out (taking them out every night, putting them into cleaning/protein removal solution and apply in the morning). I usually wear a pair for a month or so without any problem. It seems like if they're well cared for, they'll last for a long time. They're relatively inexpensive compared to the sometimes astronomical cost of glasses.

I've had contacts for 6 years or so and have never had an infection. As mentioned before, wash your hands before removing and applying. Remove them every night and clean them if applicable. My prescription still changes. Every two years I need to get examined and a new set. I'm actually due for one now as I'm squinting at the screen..

Gotta be VERY careful. It is rather easy, just make sure you wash your hands before you put them on and take them off. Keep the area where you keep the lenses very clean (the case and even where you put the case). It is very easy to be safe with them but just as easy to really mess up your eyes....last thing you want is an infection in your eye.

Quoting PPVRA (Thread starter):I would like to hear from you guys what kind of experience you had with them,

I've had a very good experience. I wear mine daily, from the moment I get up to right before I go to bed....I HATE glasses....just look terrible on me. I did have a problem awhile back with one eye that got EXTREMLY dry. Very scary because I was seeing blurry out of that one eye so I had to get some treatment for it and obviously stayed away from the contacts for about 3 weeks.

Accuvue Advance w/Hydraclear....I got these as a result of the incident I had with my eye. These are suppose to be thinner so they allow your eyes to "breath" more.

Quoting PPVRA (Thread starter): was thinking about soft disposable ones, but I'm not sure whether to get extended or daily use ones.

I have the two week disposables. Although, I am considering getting the daily disposable ones.....either of the two are fine. DEFINETLY dont want to get the yearly ones....that is just gross...the same contacts ALL year??? ewwwww

One thing I will say is contacts are VERY VERY easy to keep up with and wear. In no time you'll be wearing them without a problem....

Quoting Brettbrett21 (Reply 6):Not for me it isn't.
My eyes have continued to get worse for the last 3-4 years and it was a sharp descent!

Quoting MD11LuxuryLinr (Reply 8):My prescription still changes. Every two years I need to get examined and a new set.

I'm sorry to hear that it doesn't work for you. My eye-sight was deteriorating while I was wearing glasses and I heard some similar experiences. After buying my first set of lenses, that problem was solved for now.

Quoting CORULEZ05 (Reply 9):DEFINETLY dont want to get the yearly ones....that is just gross...the same contacts ALL year??? ewwwww

Actually, it is not. For the first two years I wore yearly ones (they were the only one available at the time). Also, with my first set, I had to use protein removal tablets every week and that was boring, but the industry is making huge steps forward. Now, I wear monthly disposable and they actually last a bit longer than that. The most important thing is to look after them. If lenses are regularly cleaned, everything will be fine.

Me too. Then, I heard about million horror stories, but today, my only horror story is that I wore glasses for five years.

I like lenses because they make me feel better. Because my skin is greasy, glasses often slowly slip from my nose and it takes every few seconds to move them back. Also, no matter how much I clean them, they are never completely clean. With lenses, I have much sharper eye-sight.

Quoting CORULEZ05 (Reply 9):I did have a problem awhile back with one eye that got EXTREMLY dry. Very scary because I was seeing blurry out of that one eye

I also have dry eyes. Have you tried artificial tears. The ones made by Bausch and Lomb are very good.

It happened to me in the bus, on my way to Budapest. Very unpleasant, but it was my mistake not to take artificial tears with me. Few drops would prevent it, but, after all, everything ended up just fine. I've learned something from that mistake.

I got my contacts when I was 15 and am so glad that I did. I am really near sighted so my glasses are super duper thick because I can't afford the fancy thin lenses and they actually curve the world at the edges of my glasses. It's kinda trippy, but annoying when I move my head quickly.

Anyways, the biggest benefit for me was that I could see clearly in my entire field of vision. I hated the fact that I couldn't see beyond the edge of my glasses and now I love the fact that I can move my eyes and still see eveywhere. The hardest part of contacts is the first week when it feels like there is an eyelash in your eye constantly. But after a week, you won't even notice it.

As for kinds of contacts, it's best to talk about that with your doctor. I use Acuvue 2, which are soft contacts that I take out at night and dispose every two weeks. According to my eye doctor, they can either be daily or extended wear. If used as extended wear, they have to be tossed every week. There's a newer Acuvue out which is supposed to be even better, but I won't switch until I use up my current supply of lenses.

A final thought about infection concerns. If you take reasonable care of your contacts, you shouldn't have a problem. I highly recommend using a solution called CibaVision ClearCare over any of the "normal" all-in-one solutions. I used Renu for 7 years and then my eye doctor noticed that my eyes turned red for a little while after putting my contacts in so she recommended me this. ClearCare is hydrogen peroxide based so it kills pretty much everything and doesn't leave a residue that all of the all-in-ones do. The biggest drawback is that you have to use it in a special case and you can not use your contacts for about 6 hours after putting them in the solution. The cool thing is that the solution bubbles due to the chemical reaction in the special case.

when i finally got my contacts last august (04) i was a virgin and really hadn't ever dated a girl...well since then i've been in a pretty long relationship (since disbanded) and i've had sex with 3 girls...haha. I had sex for the first time within weeks of getting my contact lenses...

but other than that, i really like my (soft) contacts. They can be inconvenient at some points, and when i go out (to the bars and what not) i bring a case with the solution inside with me in case i end up sleeping at someone elses house. Last night i came home and promptly passed out (due to $2 pitchers, tequila, and southern comfort from 5-9pm) and woke up 4 hours later at 2am and my contacts were stuck to my eyes, it was quite painful getting them out, but they came out. You just have to plan ahead. I use acuvue advanced (the ones with hydra clear...i've never had a problem flying with them either...)

Since the humidity levels are quite low where I live, wearing contacts made my life a living hell, despite B & L eye drops.

Basically I just wore my contacts when I was close to sea level or where the humidity was high. The rest of the time it was glasses for me, until March 2005. I underwent LASIK (Laser eye surgery) and haven't regret it once. Plus I get lots of compliments about the beautiful colour of my eyes.... Corny but true

Rgds

SA7700

When you are doing stuff that nobody has done before, there is no manual – Kevin McCloud (Grand Designs)

I love my contacts. At university I tried hard gas ones, because of my "eye type". That lasted about a year, as they were uncomfortable, and tricky. I also hated having to clean them every night, and broke one or 2 during that process. 6 years later I was going on holiday to Australia. I thought I have to try them again, as I need to be wearing shades all the time.

Went to the place, and they recommended daily disposables. Well, I havent looked back since. Pop them in, take them out and night and bin them. Marvellous. Best thing ever. There was a comment earlier about having to pinch them out of the eye. I still continue to pop them out but pulling the side of my eye. And I have only once in lots of years not taken them out at the end of the night.

I hate to be the party pooper here, but I hate them, I have quite strong astigmatism so I had to get toric lenses, which you can get now in soft lenses, but they can't get the exact lens perscription for my right eye, so for them near enough is good enough, but not for me unfortunately, the vision in my right eye is about 90%..... not to mention that toric lenses need to sit at the right degree on your eye otherwise you cant see, which happens everytime I blink slightly harder, not very pleasant when you are driving. If you have a simple perscription then go for it

If you get soft lenses (I wear Acuvue 2's in my left eye and Bausch & Lomb 66 SofLens Toric in my right eye) I strongly recommend a solution like CIBA Vision Clear Care or equivalent, which reduces infections in your eyes. These solutions have cases that (since the Solution contains Peroxide) perform a 6-hour acid-base reaction while cleaning/storing your lens. (Just don't put the unreacted solution in your eye, or put regular Saline in the special case). If you get an infection related to contact lenses, they can give you drops like Patanol to clear it up. I love my contact lenses, and haven't worn glasses in at least a year, but they can be a hassle if you don't take care of them well.

Hmmm... I do think I look much better without glasses. Miss the good old days when I didn't have to wear anything...

Quoting Rossbaku (Reply 19):
The only problem is....how are you with touching your eyes?

Great point... I have bad seasonal allergies (red, itchy eyes) when I travel to some places (e.g. summer in ATL). I get medication (basic over the counter stuff) for it and it works well, but would the contacts actually decrease my allergies since my eyes won't be in direct contact with the surrounding air (considering I skip my daily medication)?

Btw Rossbaku, I don't really have any problems touching my eyes. Thanks for the consideration though

yeouch! First tip, ask your optometrist for the most accurate advice and take what you read here as merely experience, not law. The worst thing in our office is an ill-informed patient, so we do our best to educate our patients.

Just perused most of the thread. Here is my advice as an optometrist in NY:

Mention the allergy history to the doctor. That will guide him/her toward the best lens to use. Since you state BAD seasonal allergies, perhaps a DAILY DISPOSABLE contact lens would be the best option for you. ( I prefer Biomedics 1 days)

Your allergies would only be aggravated by CL wear, but a Daily disposable, along with prescription eyedrops for seasonal conjunctivitis, might be best. IN fact, in some of my patients with seasonal conjunctivitis, I pre-treat them with antihistamine drops x 1 week then fit them in lenses a week or two later.

Now, if you have a short, defined season for allergy, consider weekly or monthly disposable CLs with a good cleaner like Alcon's OptiFree Express and during the bad season, switch to Daily disposable lenses for the season only.

IMHO, extended wear (for overnight) is overrated. Take the 10 seconds a night it takes to remove your CLs before bedtime, your eyes will love you for it.

Lastly, regarding Paragon and corneal reshaping, you have to see an optometrist that fits these special types of lenses. They are conceptually great, but the doctor has to know what he's doing in order to enhance your success with them.

Really? I use a little thing that looks like a plunger.
Andrew, sometimes those lenses are tougher to blink out b.c they use reverse geometry curves fit to your cornea. So keep using your plunger